Williamsburg VA or West Neck Area VB for retirement (Richmond: transplants, low crime)

[Rperross]

VB has everything 15 to 30 min away, transportation, shopping, beaches, some culture,
West Neck has low noise, and supposedly doesnt flood.

What about that for williamsburg?

Moving from St Augustine Beach which has humidity six months a year. Looking for less humidity, and lower temps. Also tired of evacuating for hurricanes. SA doesnt have enough culture to draw on all year, since JAX too far (don't like to drive alot).

Also, wondering about Hampton tunnel. Is it really that frightening to drive.

Thanks for any input.

[gregir]

Also, wondering about Hampton tunnel. Is it really that frightening to drive.
Not if you are a normal adult and rational.

[Patrick1973]

I can't offer too much advice on the Hampton tunnel (the few times I have used it for vacations it was crowded) , but I'm curious to see if anyone responds to the Williamsburg question. We have looked in the area. There is shopping, hospitals etc but it's been difficult to gauge about the overall cost of living for retirees.

[Bigfoot424]

Originally Posted by Rperross

VB has everything 15 to 30 min away, transportation, shopping, beaches, some culture,
West Neck has low noise, and supposedly doesnt flood.

What about that for williamsburg?

Moving from St Augustine Beach which has humidity six months a year. Looking for less humidity, and lower temps. Also tired of evacuating for hurricanes. SA doesnt have enough culture to draw on all year, since JAX too far (don't like to drive alot).

Also, wondering about Hampton tunnel. Is it really that frightening to drive.

Thanks for any input.

Um, I'm from Florida, close to St. Augustine, and we saw humidity way more than 6 months of the year. Did you live in some magical location that none of us knew about regarding humidity staying away 6 months of the year?

[slowlane3]

Williamsburg has some large golfing retirement communities (Kingsmill, and Ford's Colony), and many retirees like the area. Reasonably close to military commissaries and military and V.A. medical facilities. Colonial Williamsburg, Busch Gardens theme park, brand-name shopping outlets, Jamestown and Yorktown, and Water Country splash park, are all major tourist attractions. The long "Capital to Capital" bicycle path extends through a scenic rural area, all the way to Richmond.

[Charlesaf3]

I can't compare, but I will tell you that Williamsburg has become incredibly popular with retirees. I think of them as the dominant force there.

It will be less humid. Any place on the planet is less humid then Florida. Only kidding a little, but I lived in Florida a long time.

[VA Yankee]

Originally Posted by Rperross

VB has everything 15 to 30 min away, transportation, shopping, beaches, some culture,
West Neck has low noise, and supposedly doesnt flood.

What about that for williamsburg?

Moving from St Augustine Beach which has humidity six months a year. Looking for less humidity, and lower temps. Also tired of evacuating for hurricanes. SA doesnt have enough culture to draw on all year, since JAX too far (don't like to drive alot).

Also, wondering about Hampton tunnel. Is it really that frightening to drive.

Thanks for any input.

Va Beach can have significant traffic issues depending on the time of day or the season but so can Williamsburg in the tourist areas. Humidity is going to be the same at either location, not much different then St Augustine. I'll leave cultural opportunities to your own research as its very subjective.

[Piney Creek]

I don't know much about VB, but we recently retired to Williamsburg, so I can comment on that.

My apologies for a long post, but retirees usually have a ton of questions so I'll try to cover all the pros and cons I can think of. Pros first, cons in the next post. And I'd be happy to answer any questions you may have.

FWIW, I think it's an excellent place for retirees. It's beautiful, it's very safe, and there are lots of retirees moving in (so the area is geared for your needs and you'll find it easy to make friends).

A few more pros about WBurg:

1. For a small town, there are a high number of museums, libraries, and cultural events. It's easy to find something going on most days of the week. Naturally, a lot of the events and concerts are colonial, but there are also plenty of things like Greek festivals, jazz festivals, blues festivals, symphony & operas, salsa dancing classes, boat parades, car shows, W&M games, etc. Look up the Williamsburg library and check out the events they have. Also events at Williams and Mary. It's pretty easy to find something to do.

2. Lots of bookstores, lectures, and classes to stimulate your mind. WM has the Christopher Wren series of classes especially designed for retirees (topics are a lot more fun than typical college classes). The local community colleges let seniors audit classes for free.

3. Friendly neighbors. A large number of your neighbors have also moved there for retirement, which I think may be one reason people are very friendly. I'm not sure if every neighborhood is like this, but where I live in Ford's Colony people are very social.

4. Good health care. The two hospitals have both won a good share of awards recently. They're not at the level of the Mayo clinic, of course, but for hospitals in a small town I've been pleasantly surprised with the quality of care I've had so far. You get the advantages of small town living, but also a medical facility you'd find in a larger metro area. And since there are lots of retirees, they are good at dealing with the needs of the elderly.

5. Plenty of trails, parks, places to kayak. The Capital Bike Trail is scenic and goes all the way to Richmond, and some of the parks have impressive bike trails as well. The ocean is 50 minutes away, and there are 3 nice river beaches right here (Yorktown Beach, Jamestown Beach, College Creek Beach). Colonial Parkway has lots of places to park and enjoy doing things outdoors. Plenty of places to fish. The only thing lacking, as far as exercise is concerned, is a relative lack of sidewalks. It's not practical to walk to the store from most of the neighborhoods.

6. Speaking of exercise, if you're visiting the area be sure to check out James City County Rec Center to see all the things you can do when the weather is bad. Williamsburg gets high marks for fitness, and I suspect these are some of the reasons why. In my neighborhood (Ford's Colony) there are miles and miles of walking trails and you always see people out on them. I was surprised with how active I became after moving here, but it seems to be the thing to do. Especially if you like Pickle Ball, LOL.

6. Lots of good grocery stores, and lots of interesting stores. The outlets, the Pottery Factory, and antique malls are fun places to go when the weather is bad. Publix has just opened a store, adding yet another grocery to the mix. No indoor malls, though (Patrick Henry is the closest, about 45 minutes).

7. Lots of volunteer opportunities.

8. Taxes are low. $0.57 property in Williamsburg, compared to $1.27 in my old neighborhood in Nova (and a lot higher than that in places like NJ). There's a fairly high meals tax in the tourist area, but if you go to restaurants in James City County you avoid that. New Town, for example, is in JCC.

9. Some local favorite things to do: There is a free ferry across the James River. It's fun to go to the little Williamsburg airport to see unusual small planes flying in from all over the country. (Plus, the restaurant on the runway serves awesome food while you watch the planes). The Amtrak station is an adorable from another era. It's fun to take the train to nearby towns (you can also go to NYC or DC but it's a long trip; you're better off driving).

10. The crime level is very low. Compare crime stats to other VA cities to see what I mean. The crime that exists is mostly in the tourist area, and there are a few lower income streets that you might want to avoid (petty crime, mostly, even the Grove really isn't that bad). I don't know why, but Williamsburg sometimes seems to be in a bubble, especially when it comes to low crime. I frequently walk home from parties at night and feel perfectly safe doing so. (Note: I live in Ford's Colony; not sure I would do this in every neighborhood.)

[Piney Creek]

Cons:

1. A growing area means growing traffic. It's not as bad as what you'll encounter in other parts of Hampton Roads, and certainly not as bad as Nova, but it can be a pain on certain streets. Rush hour is short, but you'll quickly learn not to drive during it.

2. Depending on your personal preferences, you may not feel comfortable with all these people who live there. In some neighborhoods you may encounter mostly people who have lived in a small southern town all their lives and who resent newcomers. Maybe that's a "pro" for you, or maybe that's a "con", only you can say. Likewise, in some neighborhoods you may encounter a lot of transplants from NY, Nova, and NJ. In some neighborhoods it feels like everyone is from California. Other neighborhoods seem to attract retiring history majors from the midwest. Again, only you can say if these are pros or cons.

3. Humidity is high. The reason it's so lush and green is it rains (not as much as in Seattle, but more than it does in places like southern California.) You'll have mosquitoes in the summer, but about as many as you would anywhere along the east coast.

4. There are lots of tourists and tourist-related businesses, especially along Richmond Road. And Richmond Road is somewhat tacky looking. Most of us rarely drive on Richmond, except when we want to go to one of the restaurants. There are many parts of town that are mostly just locals, but be aware that heavy tourist traffic can be an issue, especially around holidays or during graduation week for William and Mary.

5. The local airport is just for cute, small planes. The nearest international airport is a 45-minute drive. If you like to travel, you'll probably regularly make connecting flights to DC or NY.

6. You'll get lots of visitors. Not only friends and family visiting WBurg, but also people stopping on their way to the Carolinas who will want to get together for lunch.

[Piney Creek]

I've said quite a bit, but there is plenty more to be said. For more info, read the two local papers (Virginia Gazette and my favorite wydaily). They're available online. also, there are several local FB pages. Look for ones that are about living in WBurg, which is very different from being a tourist to WBurg. And I will be happy to answer any question you might have. Since we just moved there I'm still very familiar with many of the neighborhoods, if that helps.